Shiftable hinge mounting for garment supports



Oct. 8, 1940.

H. P. DANSELSEN SHIFTABLE HINGE MOUNTING FOR GARMENT SUPPORTS Filed Dec. 11, 1959 E S l Patented Oct. 8, 1940 PATENT OFFICE SHIFTABLE HINGE MOUNTING FOR GARMENT SUPPORTS Hans P. Danielsen, Racine, Wis., assignor to Hartmann Trunk Company, Racine, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Application December 11, 1939, Serial No. 308,659

1 Claim.

This invention relates to improvements in shiftable hinge mountings for garment supports, and more particularly to a hinge arrangement for the luggage or garment tray of a piece of wardrobe luggage,

The present invention is concerned particularly, although not exclusively, with that type of hand luggage wherein there is a garment tray or support preferably arranged With hangers and other devices to compactly accommodate in folded condition garments such as suits, coats and the like, as exemplified in the Bracken Patent No. 1,842,579. Heretofore'ina wardrobe case or container, the tray or garment support was removably mounted in an upper portion of the body section of the container by having its lower corner portions lodged on brackets or cleats within the container section. No attempt was made to hingedly mount the tray with the resuit that it was at all times disconnected relative to the container and had to be bodily removed if access to the lower portion of the container section was desired, it being inconvenient and impractical to tilt or swing the tray when it was lodged within the container section.

It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide, in a tray equipped wardrobe container, an improved hinge mounting for the inner end of the tray, whereby the tray may be swung or tilted relative to its compartment to expose or .close said compartment.

A further object of the invention is to provide a hinge mounting for a garment tray which is disconnectable, whereby the tray may be bodily removed from the garment container with which it is normally associated.

A further object of the invention is to provide a shiftable hinge mounting for a garment tray which will permit the tray to shift or be displaced outwardly in a perpendicular direction relative to the bottom wall of the container section in which it is housed to accommodatean excess amount of clothing and traveling paraphernalia within said case section.

A further object of the invention is to provide a garment tray hingedly associated with the body section of a wardrobe case and arranged for swinging movement into the vertically disposed '50 cover of the case when the case is open, the

thereof, thereby adapting the tray to the proper accommodation of garments confined between it and the cover of the case.

A further object of the invention is to provide a shiftable hinge mounting for a wardrobe case M tray which will always insure proper and central location of the tray relative to the section of the case in which it is housed.

A- further object of the invention is to provide a shiftable hinge mounting for a wardrobe case tray which will permit the tray to be pivotally "1b swung into the open cover of the case, but which will prevent joint swinging of the cover and tray toward their closed normal positions unless the hinged inner end of the tray is in a specific projected position relative tothe cover of the case. 15

A further object of the invention is to provide a shiftable hinge mounting for garment supports with which the commercial forms of tray equipped Wardrobe cases may be readily provided, which is strong and durable, which is in- Q0 expensive to manufacture and install, and which is well adapted for the purposes described.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention consists of' the improved shiftable hinge mounting for garment supports, and its .25 parts and combinations as set'forth in the claim, and all equivalents thereof.

In the accompanying drawing in which the same reference characters indicate the same parts in all of the views: 30

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view through an open tray equipped wardrobe case in which the tray is connected to the body section of the case by the improved shiftable hinge mounting;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary detail sectional View 35 illustrating in enlarged form a part of the showing in Fig. 1 and showing the position of the trayand' the hinge elementswhen the tray is in-its normal inner position relative to the body section of the case; 49

Fig. 3 is a similar enlarged fragmentary detail sectional view showing the position of the tray and the hinge elements when the tray is shifted outwardlyrelative to the body section of the case for greater accommodation of garments 45 within said body section of .the case;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary detail sectional view showing the tray swung from its normal position to a substantially vertical position coextensive with the open cover of the case, 5,0 thehinge mounting being in the position of Fig. 2 whereby the hinged end of the tray is offset from the inner end of the cover of the case;

Fig. 5 isa fragmentary detail sectional view illustrating the position of the tray'when it is 55 raised into the cover and when the hinge connection is shifted so as to project the inner end ing in which the invention has been shown, by way of illustration, as being applied toa piece of wardrobe hand luggage, it will appear that the cover section ID of the wardrobe case has its inner end hingedly connected to the body section II of the case, as at I2. Foldable stays I3, pivotally connected to adjacent inner portions of the cover and body sections, limit the opening movement. of F the cover relative to the body section of. the case. as disclosed in the drawings. the caseisiopen, Withthe body of the caselying in a fiat or horizontal position, the cover is disposed in a plane perpendicular to the bottom wall of thebody section. The inner side walls of the body section I I of the case, near the upper corner portions,are provided with tray supporting. brackets I4. Said brackets are adapted tolhave seated thereon a garment tray, designated generally by the numeral I5. This tray is formed of any suitable material and includes a bottom I6, side walls H, and a rear wall I8. Looped straps I9 forming handles may be secured to the side walls I! to facilitate lifting or moving the tray 15 relative to the body section-II of the wardrobe case. Normally the tray is supported partially within the body section II ofthe case in the position shown in Figs. 1 and -2. The tray may carry suitable garment supporting and folding fixtures in the usual manner.

The inventionresides particularly in the provision of improved shiftable hinge mounting means for the inner end portion of the tray relative to the upper inner end portion of the body section II of:' the case. Each of the inner side walls of the body section of the case at the rear or inner ends thereof and adjacent the rearwardly disposed brackets I4, carries an upstanding spring metal plate 20. Only the lower or inner ends of the plates are secured or anchored and the same are yieldable. The outer ends of'the plates are bowed or turned outwardly as at 20' for convenience in engagingand manually manipulating the same. Each plate, inwardly of its portion 20', carries an inwardly projecting trunnion 2|. The

adjacent outer corner portions of the'inner ends of the side walls of the tray carry slotted brackets 22 with the trunnions 2I'being adapted to normally lodge withinthe elongated -slots 23 of said brackets 22. h I When it is desired tomount the tray I5 within the body section II of the case; the tray is supnecting the inner end'of the tray to the inner side wall portions of the body section of the case. This is the position the tray will normally assume and Will remain in this position unless the body section of the case is overloaded and upward or outward shifting of the tray is necessitated. With the tray mounted in the manner described the trunnions 2| are disposed within the upper ends of the slots 23 as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. From this position the tray may be swung to an upwardly tilted position with its outer end within the outer end of the open cover section Illof the case. This arrangement is disclosed in Fig. 4 and it will be noted that the hinge mounting for the tray causes the lower end of the tray to be offset from the lower end otjth cover; I0; When the tray thus swung to a substantially vertical position, ready access may be had to the interior of the body section of the case without the necessity of bodilyremoving the tray. If the tray is rather amply packed, theoffset position of it illustrated in Fig, {1 permits it to clearly accommodate garments-confined between it and-the cover I0.

At this pointit should be observed that when the cover and tray are in the position of Fig. 4, it is not possible'to jointly close the cover and tray relative to the body section of the case. The When the cover of offset arrangement of the tray causes it to bind againstthe cover as thecover-is swung toward closed position. --The cover and-tray may, however,. be jointly swung .toward closed position by shifting the hinge. connections for the tray from the position of Fig. 4 to the position of Fig. 5. This will relocate the inner end of the tray relative to the inner end of the cover and will eliminate the binding. action heretofore referred to.

If it is necessaryto overpack the body section of the wardrobe case, the improved hinge mountingforthetray will permit the tray to be pushed upwardlyor outwardly relative to the case section II. The trunnions 2I will'then shift downwardly inthelslots 23 and the tray will rise or telescopeoutwardly relative to the case section I I as best shown in 3. The tray may be-pivoted or-swungto an open position from either the position of Fig; 2 or. the position of Fig. 3 with equal effectiveness or from-any intermediate position.

If it isdesired -to bodily remove the tray I5 from thewardrobe case, this may be readily accom'plishedinthe manner illustrated in Fig. '7'. It is only necessary to flex the spring arms 20 slightly outwardly to disengage the trunnions 2| from the bracket slots 23, and then the entire tray may be separated from the wardrobe case.

From the-foregoing description it will appear that the improved hinge mounting for a wardrobe case tray provides for ready attachment or detachment of thetray relative to the'wardrobe case. When the tray is attached it may be effectively hingedor swung relative=to the case section in whichit is mounted, and the hinge connections are free to shift-to relocate the trayrelative to the body sectionof the case or relative to the cover section of the case, and thisis effective in adaptingthe positionof the tray to the amount of gar- .mentsv containedin either thebody section of the caseor. the tray.-.,,'.The .hinge connection for the tray, furthermore insuresproper and central 11oeating-of thetray relative. to the body section of thefcase afte'r -each movement of the tray. The improvedhinge mounting is furthermore of simple and novel construction and is well adapted for the purposes setforth. I v a 'What isclaimed as the. invention is:

In aluggage case including a. body section, a hinged coverand a tray telescopically mounted within the, bodysection, hinge connections betweenadjacent wall portionsor the body section and the tray to permit movements of the tray relative to the body section comprising, yieldable trunnions mounted on said relatively immovable body s cti d- 1o ra set .mounted onsa d movable tray,"'any portions" of" the slots of said brackets being normally engaged by said trunnions and permitting vertical and pivotal movements of the tray relative to said body section, the trunnions being shiftable in said bracket slots in any connected and mounted position of the tray to relocate the axis of pivotal movement of the tray, the yieldable trunnions being manually disengageable from said slotted brackets and permitting entire detachment and removal of said tray from said case body section.

HANS P. DANIELSEN. 

